


Clinginess and the Art of Loving a Hacker

by carinascott



Category: Leverage
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-17
Updated: 2011-08-17
Packaged: 2017-10-10 05:53:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/96298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carinascott/pseuds/carinascott
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Alright. Let's run it. I wanna know what happened, how it happened, and what we're gonna do about it. Because no one hurts my family and gets away with it."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Clinginess and the Art of Loving a Hacker

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written for the 2010 Leverage Gift Exchange over at Livejournal's LeveragExchange Community. There are no spoilers for this fic, but when I wrote it I was writing with the idea that Nate was back on the team after the situation from the Season 2 finale was resolved. As this was written and posted (not here, but at my lj account) prior to the Season 3 premiere, there is no mention of anything that takes place during the premiere. Anywho, this my take on one of hunters_retreat 's requested prompts: _'any pairing (minus Nate/Sophie) an injury leads to someone kissing it better.'_

~***~

Eliot had never really understood why Alec got so bent out of shape when Eliot got hurt. For all of Hardison’s teasing, Eliot knew that the younger man hated to see any of his teammates hurt. And since it was usually Eliot that ended up bruised and battered, it was usually Eliot that bore the brunt of Hardison’s tirade about his innate need to punch something. At first he assumed it was just Hardison’s way of joking with Eliot and letting him know that he was happy that Eliot had made it out of whatever catastrophe he’d been in relatively unscathed. But after they’d become lovers, Eliot realized that Hardison truly worried about him when he came home with the random broken nose or sprained finger.

But still, Eliot didn’t understand why. Sure, he understood that as a lover it couldn’t be pleasant seeing your partner injured in any way. But sometimes the fear he saw in Alec’s eyes was unsettling. And those nights, especially if Eliot broke a bone or required Nate’s more astute stitching skills, Alec would be kinda clingy, touching Eliot at every turn, needing almost full body contact when they slept at night. In fact, the first time this happened after they’d become lovers, Eliot was more than happy that they’d come out to the team because otherwise Alec’s clinginess would’ve been a little hard to explain.

But while he found the obvious love and concern for his well-being heartwarming, Eliot often thought the dramatics were overkill. This was what he did. He took the punishment, suffered through all the punches and kicks, and did so gracefully because this was Eliot’s job. And he was damn good at it.

Eliot tried explaining this to Hardison on numerous occasions, but Alec would just shake his head, grabbing more peroxide or bandages, and tell his lover that he just didn’t understand.

And he’d been right. Eliot hadn’t understood.

Until now.

It’s not just the cuts and bruises, broken bones and bloodied lips. It’s more than that. So much more. Until now, Eliot hadn’t realized just how much could be heard over the comms. He’d known that the comms picked up pretty much everything they said; the main reason Tara’s constant yelling had bothered him to no end. But he didn’t realize that it literally picked up _everything_. No wonder Alec was often bent out of shape after Eliot had been forced to defend himself (or his teammates) against the random bad guy.

Hearing the person you’ve come to love more than anything in this world (even if you haven’t mentioned it to said person) getting beaten to a bloody pulp, knowing there is nothing you can do to stop it, is the worst feeling in the world.

Hearing Alec’s harsh pants, hissed curses, and outright screams as Casey Goodman’s goons pound on him is nearly Eliot’s undoing.

“Five minutes, Alec. Just hang on, I’m coming.” Eliot says into the comm., praying that the pain hasn’t completely consumed Alec’s focus, hoping that his lover can still hear him.

Parker yelps in alarm as Eliot floors it, swerving in and out of traffic, narrowly missing a car in their lane, before grabbing the ‘oh shit’ bar and hanging on. Eliot hardly notices this, too focused on getting to his lover, wishing all the while that he was in Hardison’s place. That’s his job, he takes the beatings, and he protects the team. Hardison was never supposed to be in this position.

They arrive at the abandoned warehouse with two minutes to spare, and Eliot is out of the truck almost before he fully stops, knowing Parker is hot on his heels. It takes them all of three minutes to find Alec’s location, and Eliot doesn’t pause once he spots the group of men (he counts five) surrounding his lover, some kicking him in the sides while the others stand around watching.

Two of the men are down before the other three even realize Eliot’s in the room, and Parker has one kneeling with his hands at his crotch before she does a round-house kick to his face that sends him crashing into the wall a few feet away. When she turns, Eliot has taken down another goon and is working on the final one. She watches, oddly fixated, as Eliot punches the man repeatedly until the man slumps to the floor, unconscious.

Catching the rope and roll of duck tape he throws to her, wondering where exactly he’d gotten it from, Parker jumps into action as Eliot calls out, “Tie them up. If they come around before we’re done here, I don’t want them to be able to move.”

~***~

Ten minutes later, all the men tied and gagged, Parker joins Eliot at Hardison’s side, trying to hide her shock at the way Hardison looks. They’d all heard the beating he’d taken over the comms, it would’ve been pretty impossible not to, so she had known that it wouldn’t be a pretty sight. But this was more than even she had expected. Blood drips from his busted lip, his right eye is nearly swollen shut with the left not too far behind, and his wrist on his left arm is a deep purple, visible even on Hardison’s darker skin. And he hasn’t moved since they arrived from what she can tell, so it’s pretty obvious that he’s unconscious. Given the long list of external injuries, not to mention the possible internal injuries (something she’d rather not think about right now), it’s probably a blessing in disguise.

Shaking away the anger at seeing one of her closest friends hurt to this degree, Parker instead focuses on Eliot, knowing he’ll need her at the top of her game to get Hardison into the van and on the way to the hospital.

Looking at Eliot, who hasn’t moved since he first knelt at Hardison’s side fifteen minutes ago, save for the heartbreaking way he keeps gently petting his lover’s uninjured arm, Parker sighs heavily.

She knows all about Hardison and Eliot’s relationship, you’d have to be blind and deaf not to (not to mention the fact that Eliot had just blurted out the truth a few months back), but at the moment she wishes they weren’t so close. Because she needs Eliot at the top of his game too, and with the exception of Nate, Eliot is the most efficient man she knows. Except now, when’s he’s needed most, Eliot is a mess.

Knowing that Eliot will hate himself forever if Hardison is placed in even more danger because of Eliot’s failure to act, Parker realizes that she’s going to have to take charge for the moment. Snapping her fingers to break the silence, Parker hisses, “Eliot! I don’t exactly know what to do here, so I need you to focus! _Hardison_ needs you to focus.”

That seems to snap the hitter out of it, because soon he’s walking around the warehouse, looking for something (she has no clue what), before he shouts in satisfaction. A few moments later he returns to Hardison’s side, a long piece of plywood in his arms. “Parker, do we have any more rope left?”

“Yeah. And I think there’s more in Hardison’s van.”

“Good. Give me what you have on hand, and then go get the van. Be careful. Goodman’s men were probably supposed to check in at some point, and when they don’t he’s gonna send more men to see what happened. If you see or hear anything suspicious, come back here and get me. I need to know you’re safe if we’re gonna get Hardison out of here in one piece. No heroics, got it?”

Parker nods once and then moves quickly towards the door. She arrives at the van without incident, and searching the back quickly, finds the rope she came looking for. Tossing it onto the passenger seat beside her, she climbs into the driver’s seat, and starts the car. Two minutes later she’s back at Eliot’s side, passing him the rope and the duck tape, before realizing that Hardison’s wrist will likely need some kind of splint to make sure, if it is in fact broken, that it doesn’t get any worse. “Here you go. Where’d you find the wood?”

“There’s a pile towards the back of the warehouse. Most of it’s broken, but I found this piece. It’s about the only one that is large enough and strong enough to hold him. I figure it’s the next best thing to a gurney, and I want to make sure he’s as stable as possible when we put him in the van.”

“Shouldn’t we call the ambulance?” Under most circumstances Parker would understand the need to forgo the trip to the hospital, but her worry over Hardison’s condition makes her ask the question all the same.

“We should. But there is no way to explain away the five unconscious guys. Or the reason we’re here in the first place. And with Hardison’s injuries the cops will definitely be called in to investigate. We can’t risk it.”

“But what about Hardison? He needs to be seen by a doctor.”

“While you were gone I talked to Nate and Sophie over the comms, you didn’t hear me?”

Checking her ear, Parker groans in frustration as she realizes that her comm is gone. “Must’ve lost it when I was fighting that guy earlier. Hardison is gonna kill me.”

“Yeah, well we gotta get him outta here first. Let me finish strapping him to the board.”

“I’ll help you.” Parker replied as she watched Eliot move the board into place. “What did Nate say when you talked to him?”

“He has a doctor friend that is already on the way to the loft. He’s gonna check on Hardison. If he says it’s necessary, no matter what, we’ll take him to the hospital.”

“How are we gonna get him in without anyone seeing us?”

“Cora is going to let us use the employee entrance for the bar. And we’ll take the elevator all the way up. Sophie’s preparing Nate’s guest room for Hardison. I’m pretty sure he’ll be laid up there for a while.”

“Ok. Well, before we move him, let me go see if one of those pieces of wood is small enough for his wrist. If it’s broken, moving him without stabilizing it first will only make it worse.”

When Parker returns with the piece of wood, she discovers that Eliot has removed the larger pieces of computer equipment from the back of the van to make room for Hardison.

“What are we gonna do with all of that?”

“I’ll put what I can in the front seat. If I can’t get it all in, we’ll have to leave it.”

Hoping it won’t come to that, knowing that they’ll get an earful about the comm already, Parker nods and begins to work on the splint. It takes a few minutes, and quite a bit of duck tape, but eventually she has Hardison’s wrist secured.

“Alright, let’s get him on the board and into the van.”

Twenty minutes later, panting and sweating more than she’d like, Parker climbs behind the wheel as Eliot starts loading the computer equipment he’d removed earlier into the front seat next to her. It takes some doing but he manages to get it all in.

Parker glances back at Alec, brow furrowing in worry because with all that has gone on, all the jostling and moving, Hardison has yet to wake up.

She starts the van once Eliot climbs in the back next to Hardison, pulling away when she hears the rear door close. She spots the still unconscious men lying about the warehouse as she drives off, and finds herself wishing that they had time to make these guys really suffer. But there will be time for that later. She knows Eliot won’t have it any other way.

 

~***~

 

Eliot sighs as he looks down at Hardison. He’s more than a little bit worried that his lover has yet to wake up.

‘Maybe we should take him to the hospital, damn the consequences.’ Eliot thinks, just as Alec begins to moan.

“Shhh, darlin’. I’ve got you.” Eliot murmurs to Alec, pressing a soft kiss to his temple.

“El?” Hardison whispers, blinking his swollen eyes open as far as he can, before smiling slightly as he finally focuses on his lover. “You came. I knew you would.”

Eliot feels his heart constrict at the unwavering faith in Alec’s voice. “Always. How do you feel?”

“Like shit. Did you kick their asses?”

“You know I did.”

“Good. I warned them, but they didn’t listen.”

“They should have. I looked you over, Alec. I didn’t see anything more serious than the possibly broken wrist and busted lip, though I’m sure you have a concussion. But if you feel pain anywhere else you’ll have to tell me.”

“Everything hurts, El. But besides the lip and wrist, I think I’m just bruised.” Alec glances around as best he can with the swollen eyes, “Where’s my computer?”

Chuckling softly, Eliot reaches out to grab Alec’s uninjured hand, “It’s in the front seat. I had to take most of the larger equipment out so I could get you in here. But I was able to get everything up front, next to Parker.”

“Parker’s here?”

“She’s driving us to Nate’s. He has a doctor waiting there to check you over.”

“Hey Hardison. How you feeling?” Parker asks, glancing quickly back at the hacker.

“Like I went twenty rounds with Tyson,” Hardison replies, groaning in pain as he tries to shift, “Thanks for coming.”

“More than a team right?” Parker replies, flicking on the signal before moving into the right lane.

She can’t see it, but Alec smiles at her response, eyes drifting shut as sleep pulls at him.

“Hardison, open your eyes!” Eliot shouts, making Alec’s eyes fly open with alarm. “Sorry darlin’, but you can’t go to sleep. You were unconscious when we found you, and I know you have a concussion, so we need the doc to look over you first. You think you can hold on for me a while longer?”

Alec nods, then grimaces as his head begins aching even more, “Shit El, this sucks.”

“I know sweetheart, but we’ll be at Nate’s in about five minutes.”

“Okay, okay. I can make it.” Hardison is silent for a long while, and Eliot thinks he’s drifted off, but when he looks he can see that his lover is still awake. And from the looks of it, getting extremely pissed off.

“Hardison, what is it? What’s wrong?”

“Those bastards broke my wrist Eliot. I can deal with the lip, even the concussion; it sucks but I can deal. But my wrist?!? How the hell am I supposed to hack with a broken wrist!?! Man, I wish I could’ve seen you kick their asses. Fucking bastards!”

Eliot is smart enough to know that no matter how humorous he finds Hardison’s tirade, it’s better for him to keep the laughter to himself. Leaning in to kiss his lover, mindful of the busted lip, Eliot smiles, “If it’s any consolation, Parker took one of the guys out. So, at least you know that one of them will have to live with the embarrassment of getting beat up by a girl.”

“Hey!” Parker yells, glancing at the pair over her shoulder.

Eliot can’t help the smile that once again slides onto his face, seeing his lover perk up at the news, but he can still see Alec fighting off sleep. So, knowing that Parker is gonna kick his ass for it later, Eliot breaks the news to Alec, “I’ve got some bad news for you, Alec. Parker lost one of your comms.”

The reaction is immediate, “What?! She lost the comm! MY comm! Do you people not appreciate anything?! I worked my ass off on those things and y’all just go around losing them all willy nilly. I know I make it look easy, but making those comms requires a lot of late, sleepless nights. I swear! No appreciation. Absolutely none. But then you guys bitch that I have no life. Well, when I’m fixing and re-creating stuff that you all break or lose, how can I be expected to have a life?” Hardison continues his tirade clear through them unloading him from the van, going through the employee entrance, and up to Nate’s place. It isn’t until Sophie squeals upon seeing him alive and mostly in one piece that he stops to take a breath.

As Eliot and Nate place Hardison on the bed in the guest bedroom, at the doctor’s instruction, Parker looks at Eliot from the foot of the bed. “You’re gonna pay for that Spencer.”

But all Eliot can do is smile, willing to take his punishment, now that Hardison is safe and the doctor is able to look him over. He shoos the rest of the team out, to give Hardison some privacy as the doctor helps him strip to assess his injuries. Eliot stands off to the side, attempting to be unobtrusive yet unwilling to leave, and watches as the doctor works on his lover.

An hour later, Hardison’s grunts and curses having died down since the pain meds the doctor gave him started to kick in, the doctor motions for Eliot to leave the room. As the doctor closes the door quietly behind him, Eliot feels his anxiety ratcheting up.

The two men walk into the living room, joining the others, and Eliot is growing impatient at the man’s consistent silence.

“How’s he doing, Martin?”

Looking at Nate, before turning his attention to Eliot, Dr. Martin Fitzsimmons finally speaks, “He’s going to be fine. His wrist wasn’t broken. It looked like it, and the bruising didn’t help, but the range of motion is too good for it to be a break. It’s just a severe sprain. I’ve placed his wrist in a temporary splint, as you saw. He can remove it, but he should only do so when it’s going to be iced. You should ice it every three to four hours for a day or two. After that, you can switch to a heat regimen. Either way, don’t apply the heat or the ice for more than twenty minutes at a time.”

“What about using his hand? When will he be able to use it?”

“Yes, Nate told me he was a computer geek. So, I figure about a week will be the best for his wrist. But, since I know from experience what it’s like to live with a computer deprived geek, my son broke his arm last year, I’d say that three days without using his wrist should be good enough. After that, if he feels up to it, he can. But make sure he doesn’t over do it. The pain pills will make him feel like he can do anything, but overusing his wrist too soon can make his healing time longer.”

“Any internal injuries?” Eliot asked, knowing that the kicks Hardison took could’ve caused broken ribs.

“Not that I could discern. There’s tenderness in the rib area and all along his back, but from what Nate tells me, he took a pretty severe beating. So that’s to be expected. The pain pills should help with the soreness.”

“What about his kidneys? I noticed blood in his urine when I helped him to the bathroom earlier.”

“The kicks to his back likely included a few to his kidneys. Blood in the urine is somewhat normal. But since he’s already urinated, there likely won’t be anymore. If there is, give me a call.” Eliot takes the business card the doctor hands over.

“And he has a mild concussion. I’m sure you are well versed in the ‘wait and watch’ method of care when it comes to a concussion, I know Nate is, so just check on him every two hours, and he should be okay by the morning. He’ll still have a headache, but he’ll be okay after a few days. And that’s pretty much it. He’ll be stiff and sore for a while, but a good soak with some Epsom salts should ease the stiffness. If there are any unforeseen complications, or you have any questions, just give me a call.”

Eliot and Nate shake the doctor’s hand before Nate walks him down to his car.

Eliot turns back towards the guest bedroom, intent on checking in on his lover. Peering in, he smiles at the sight of Alec fast asleep. Walking over to his lover, Eliot pulls the blankets up tighter around him, before leaning in to kiss Alec on the forehead. He knows he’s being a sap, maybe even a little clingy, but he can’t help it.

He knows how close he came to losing Hardison, and the image of his lover lying unconscious on that warehouse floor will never leave him; he’s not about to take this precious time with his lover for granted.

Closing the door quietly behind him, Eliot goes to Nate’s kitchen to prepare some tea. It’s time to figure out what went wrong on their latest con, and what to do about it. Because Eliot knows without a doubt that Casey Goodman is going to pay for what happened to Hardison.

When the tea kettle whistles, Eliot grabs a bag of tea from the box, places it in the mug and pours the water over it. Taking the mug over to the living room, where Nate has just rejoined the ladies, Eliot takes a seat in the vacant chair.

“Alright. Let’s run it. I wanna know what happened, how it happened, and what we’re gonna do about it. Because no one hurts my family and gets away with it.”

 

~***~

 

Eliot curses under his breath as Alec pushes him away once more, trying to figure out why Alec keeps turning away his attempts to help. The first few days had been great. Eliot had been at Alec’s beck and call, helping him to the bathroom when he needed it, cooking for him, sitting with his lover and talking (something they never really did before), just basically offering his support. Alec had seemed to like the attention, but since this morning he’d bristled every single time Eliot had tried to help.

Groaning again, Eliot closes the door behind him and stalked into his kitchen. They’d moved Hardison to Eliot’s place the next morning when it was clear that Hardison could stand and move with minimal assistance, his balance slightly off due to the concussion. Eliot thought the change of scenery would help, and had initially suggested Hardison’s place, but Alec shot that down immediately, saying that it would be pure torture to be around his ‘babies’ and not be able to touch them. So Eliot, taking his lover at his word, took Alec to his place, and his lover had been there ever since.

Quietly taking out the makings for tea, Eliot almost has a heart attack when Parker seemingly appears out of nowhere.

“Parker! What the hell?! Why are you here?”

“I came to see Hardison. But he’s grumpy. So I came to see you. You’re grumpy too.”

“Whatever. You want some tea?”

“Sure. You got any cookies left. I loved those macadamia nut ones you made for Hardison the other day.”

“Yes, but you have to eat the white chocolate ones. The macadamias are for Alec.” Eliot shakes his head at Parker’s pout, watching as she raids his cookie jar, absently wondering how she stays so slim when she eats like a linebacker.

“So, are you guys grumpy because you need sex? Or is it something else?”

“Parker, we are not having this conversation.”

Parker easily jumps up on the counter, folding her legs beneath her, happily munching on a cookie. “Why not? We all have sex. I mean, not together or anything- hmmm, there’s a thought. Anyway, I figured that the reason you two are so easily frustrated is due to lack of sex. What’s it been, like four days?”

“Parker….”

“Yeah, yeah. _‘We’re not having this conversation.’_ I don’t know why it’s such a big deal.”

“Because it’s private!” Eliot replies, grabbing the whistling kettle off of the stove, hissing as he burns his finger on the steam being released.

“I’m not asking to watch, Eliot. It’s just - look, Hardison is not used to standing on the sidelines. Even if he’s not at the forefront of the operation, he’s always there behind the scenes. We’ve been making plans for taking Goodman down for days. He feels useless because he can’t use his computer. And because of that, he’s on edge. It’s up to you to take the edge off. It’s not rocket science.” Parker rolls her eyes, sliding down off the counter.

As Eliot watches Parker leave, tea completely forgotten, he has to admit that she has a point. Because of the Goodman case, Eliot and Hardison hadn’t had time for anything more time consuming than a handjob and one blowjob in Nate’s bathroom. And that had been at least two days before the con went wrong. So it had been six days since they’d last had any intimate physical contact. Eliot has been horny, but he’s been waiting for Alec to give him a hint that he is ready for anything more physical. With all the pain and tenderness of his body, Eliot hadn’t wanted to pressure his lover into anything before he was ready.

But now that he thought about it, Alec probably assumed that it was due to him not being interested. For all his joking and obnoxiousness, Alec was surprisingly insecure. He probably figured that Eliot didn’t want to touch him with the bruises and such that still adorned his lover’s face.

Sighing, Eliot tosses the tea bag aside, and walks over to the bedroom door. It is time to disabuse his lover of that idiotic notion.

Opening the door slowly, Eliot smiles seeing Alec sprawled on his back, taking up more space on the bed than is absolutely necessary. It was one of the things he’d had to get used to when they started sleeping together. Luckily for them both, Eliot pretty much stayed in one place while he slept, so Alec had free reign of the rest of the bed. Even so, most nights he still ends up sprawled all over Eliot. Fortunately, Eliot doesn’t mind.

Climbing onto the bed, careful not to bump the still tender wrist, Eliot straddles his lover. Easing down slowly, so as not to wake Alec just yet, he reaches out and rubs along Alec’s chest.

He’d been somewhat surprised the first time he’d seen Hardison without a shirt. He’d never imagined that under all those layers the computer geek had a body like this. Running his fingers over the defined chest, tweaking Alec’s nipples, Eliot bends down and follows the same path with tongue and lips.

Feeling his lover move beneath him, Eliot eases up a bit before climbing off the bed. He removes the blanket that covers his lover, taking a moment to admire the naked beauty before him. He strips his own clothes off quickly and quietly before retaking his position astride Alec’s lap, groaning at the long overdue feel of skin to skin contact.

Taking Alec’s lax cock in his hand, Eliot strokes slowly, bending down once more to lick and bite at Hardison’s nipples. It’s not long before Alec is moaning constantly and Eliot knows for sure his lover is awake. Looking up Eliot finds Alec’s staring down at him, eyes almost black with desire. Not letting up on the cock in his hand, Eliot moves up and takes Alec’s lips in a slow, tantalizing kiss.

Hardison opens to him immediately, pulling his lover closer with his good hand. Panting, the two men pull apart to take in much needed air.

“I missed this.” Alec whispers, and then moans as Eliot thumbs the head of his cock.

“Me too. Didn’t think you were up for it.”

“Didn’t think you were interested with me all bloody and blue.”

Reaching over into the top drawer of the nightstand, Eliot grabs the lube and a condom. Coating his fingers, he reaches behind him and slowly begins to prepare himself for Alec’s cock. “Oh darlin’, it would take a hell of a lot more than a few bruises and cuts to stop me from wanting you. I’ve been thinking about your cock for days now.”

Alec reaches up with his good hand, twisting Eliot’s nipples as his lover continues to prepare himself. “Well, you got me now. Whatcha gonna do about it?”

In answer, Eliot positions himself over Hardison’s cock before guiding it to his hole and slowly sliding down until Alec is fully sheathed in Eliot’s heat. Both men groan, Eliot pausing to adjust and allow Alec to regain his own control. Eliot knows they’re not gonna last long, it’s been too long since they were together like this, but he’s determined to make it last as long as possible.

Slowly, enjoying the slight burn, Eliot’s begins to move on Alec’s cock. Hardison pulls at his nipples, that constantly moving mouth now spewing the filth that Eliot loves to hear when they are together like this. It had been a revelation, that first time they’d made love, to hear Alec speak like this. Even more, it had surprised Eliot how much hearing the dirty filth from his lover’s voice turned him on.

“Yeah, baby. That’s it. Take my cock. You like it don’t ya? Love to ride my dick like this. You’d do it all day if you could, wouldn’t you?” Moving his hand from Eliot’s nipples, Alec starts to stroke his lover’s cock. “Would you stop if someone walked in? What if it was Nate? Or Sophie? Or Parker? Yeah, you’d like that wouldn’t you. You’d love to let Parker watch you take my cock, wouldn’t you?”

Eliot threw his head back, lost in Alec’s words and the sensations coursing through his body as he neared climax. Alec was thrusting up to meet each downward thrust of Eliot’s hips, but the words kept coming.

“Come on El. Show me what you’d do. Put on a show for me. Show Parker how much you love my cock. Come on baby, I’m so close. Make me lose it, El. Make me forget about everything else, everything but you. Come on, I know you can do it. That’s it, that’s it. So close, so…..fuck…..don’t stop! Oh…oh…. I’m gonna…..gonna…..fuuuck!”

Feeling the warmth of Alec’s release is all Eliot needs before he finds himself spilling over Alec’s chest and hand. Sated and exhausted, Eliot collapses forward onto Hardison’s chest.

An undetermined amount of time later, Eliot wakes to the feel of Hardison’s fingers running through his hair. Sitting up a bit, Eliot lets Alec’s soft cock slip from his body. Kissing Alec softly, Eliot climbs out of the bed, disappearing into the on suite bathroom. Returning with a damp wash cloth, Eliot cleans himself and Alec, before tossing the cloth towards the bathroom. Lying in the bed next to his lover, he grabs Hardison’s uninjured hand, lacing their fingers together.

“You’ve been doing that a lot these last few days. I thought it was too clingy?” Alec responded, bringing up a common comment Eliot used to make when Alec did this exact thing after Eliot had been injured yet again.

“Yeah, and I thought you were being an overdramatic Drama Queen when you worried about me so much after I’d get hurt on a job.”

“And now?”

“Now I know what it’s like to hear someone you love getting beat to hell and back, knowing there’s nothing you can do.”

Alec brought their laced fingers to his mouth, kissing Eliot’s knuckles softly. “You came for me. I knew you would. That’s all I needed you to do.”

“Well, I should’ve been there in the first place. It shouldn’t have happened, not to you.”

“And what? It should’ve happened to you?”

“Yes!” Eliot shouts, then sighs and lowers his voice. “It’s what I do, Alec. We all have our place on this team. Taking the punishment, kicking the bad guy ass, that’s what I do. Your van is supposed to be safe. You’re supposed to be safe.”

“Eliot, how many times have things gone wrong on a job, things that were my responsibility? How many times have you ended up hurt because of it?” Holding up his injured wrist to forestall Eliot’s interruption, Alec continues, “Yeah, I know. It’s not my fault. Well guess what, this is not your fault. As much as we’d like to think different, we’re not perfect. We can only do our best and hope for a good outcome. When the shit hits the fan, I know you’re gonna be there to help me through it. That’s all I can hope for, all that matters.”

“I’ll always come for you, Hardison.”

“I know that. It’s the only thing that got me through the other day.” Leaning in to kiss Eliot softly on the lips, Alec pulls back with a smile. “Now, I’m tired. And I know you’re tired. I think a nap is in order.”

“Sounds like a good plan to me.” Eliot replies, pulling the blankets up to cover them before settling back against the mattress. Still holding Alec’s hand, Eliot finds it easy to drift off to sleep.

 

~***~

 

It was later that evening, both men relaxing on the couch after a quiet meal of pot roast and vegetables, that Eliot’s mind drifts back to a subject that has been nagging him for days. The moment he’d walked into that warehouse, Eliot had felt this gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach. Kneeling next to his lover’s battered body, seeing Alec so broken; Eliot knew that if Alec made it Eliot would make sure his lover knew how much he loved him.

But when Eliot realized that Alec was on the fast track to recovery, he’d clammed up. Yes, he was more clingy and attentive than usual, but he just could never bring himself to say those three words. Maybe it was because Hardison had never said them either; at least that’s what Eliot tried to convince himself was the reason.

But now, sitting here with Alec’s head in his lap as he drifts between watching TV and sleeping, Eliot wonders at his hesitation. Because now saying the words seems like the most natural thing in the world.

“I love you, Alec.”

Hardison blinks slowly before turning over onto his back and looking up at his lover. “What?”

“I said, I love you.” Eliot smiles as he caresses Alec’s cheek, looking down into his dark eyes. “You don’t have to say it back, darlin’. I just want you to know how I feel.”

“What if I want to say it back?” Alec asks, leaning into Eliot’s caress.

“That’s good too.” Eliot smiles into the kiss that Alec leans up to give him.

“I love you Eliot.” Alec sighs happily as they break apart, lying back down with a sappy smile on his face.

The two men stay like that for a while, looking at each other with contented smiles, before Alec begins to drift off.

Watching his lover sleep, Eliot realizes that this is the first time he’s ever truly been in love. Sure, he’d loved Aimee, but he wasn’t the same person then. He’d been so closed off, afraid to let anyone close to him, afraid to be vulnerable in any way; he now knows that they were doomed from the start.

But with Alec it’s easy to let the younger man in. Honestly, Eliot really didn’t have a choice in the matter because Hardison didn’t take no for an answer. And Eliot’s happy that he hadn’t run off at the first sign of displeasure from Eliot, because in the beginning Eliot had been steadfastly determined that they would be fuck buddies and nothing more.

Eliot should’ve known from the start that the hacker would win him over. After all, Hardison spent most of his days breaking and deciphering the codes of some of the most intricate security systems in the world.

Unlocking the secrets to Eliot’s heart was a cake walk in comparison. Especially when deep down, Eliot was rooting for him the entire time.

Smiling, as Alec begins to snore softly, Eliot reaches over for the remote and clicks off the TV. Resuming what has become his favorite pastime over the last few days, Eliot settles back against the couch to watch his lover sleep.

Life is good, and with Alec by his side, Eliot knows it can only get better.

 

~***~

 

**   
Three Months Later   
**

“Come on El, Parker is downstairs waiting for us!”

“Hang on Hardison! I’ll be there in a minute.” Without even turning around, Eliot knows that his lover is pouting; rolling his eyes, Eliot turns to Alec, “Just two minutes darlin’, I really want to see this news story.”

Huffing in annoyance, knowing that Eliot knows what the whole ‘darlin’ bit does to him, Alec turns towards the front door, “Two minutes, El. I’ll be down in the van with Parker. Hurry up!”

Eliot, most of his attention already back on the TV, nods absently. As the news announcer begins the story, Eliot leans in, hands placed on the back of the couch.

_“And in other news today, Senator Casey Goodman pled no contest today against charges of drug and human trafficking. If you recall, almost three months ago, Goodman was tied to a local drug syndicate. The revelation came amidst Senator Goodman’s ‘Clean up Boston’ campaign, a program the Senator allegedly implemented to clean up the seedier parts of Boston and keep drugs out of our schools.”_

_“Goodman’s involvement with a local drug cartel was first discovered when a photo of Goodman and Carlos Vasquez was emailed to the press. Carlos Vasquez has long been suspected of drug trafficking, but the Boston police hadn’t been able to prove it. Amid outcry from high ranking political figures to prove that the photo was a fake, the Boston police stepped up their investigation into the matter. It was soon discovered that the photo was, in fact, 100% authentic, which lead to further investigation into Senator Goodman’s involvement.”_

_“Senator Goodman maintained his innocence all the while, which is why his plea bargain brings with it a whole slew of unanswered questions. Keep watch here as we continue our own investigation and get the answers to those questions. Back to you Peter.”_

Smiling, knowing that Alec could dig up the details of the plea for him later, Eliot grabs his jacket and heads towards the door.

Taking down Goodman hadn’t been as bloody or physical as Eliot would’ve liked, mainly because Hardison wanted it that way, but it was good to know that they’d taken the scumbag down all the same.

Whistling to himself as he locks the door behind him, Eliot’s good mood isn’t even dampened by the idea of going grocery shopping and spending the rest of his day with Hardison _and_ Parker.

Yeah, life is definitely good.

**END**


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